By AppleInsider Staff

Published: 02:00 PM EST (11:00 AM PST)

Apple Inc., which plans to turn an existing Montreal storefront into Canada's first high-profile Apple flagship shop, will have to hold off renovation efforts until the current tenant vacates the premises later this fall.

The Cupertino-based Mac maker has secured a lease at 1321 Ste-Catherine Ouest in the heart of Montreal's shopping district, currently occupied by a MENS fashion retailer. Once MENS vacates the premises this November, Apple will begin to heavily alter the site, which it plans to turn into a two-story flagship retail store spanning some 9,300 square feet.

Among the planned renovations, as AppleInsider exclusively reported on Wednesday, are a new roof and stainless steel facade. Apple also plans to relocate some structural columns, raise the ground floor, and install a trademark glass staircase joining retail floors 1 and 2.

Photos of the existing MENS fashion retailer (below) show Apple to have chosen a location for its first Canadian flagship shop that is already reminiscent of some of its higher-profile stores, complete with a spacious interior and large window displays on both floors.